Title page for ETD etd-04012004-142458

The Relation between Knowledge of ADHD and Treatment Acceptability in a Multi-Disciplinary Pediatric Clinic

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

Department

Psychology

Advisory Committee

Advisor Name

Title

Mary Lou Kelley

Committee Chair

Holly Filcheck

Committee Member

Joseph Witt

Committee Member

Wm Drew Gouvier

Committee Member

Mary Elizabeth Garrison

Dean's Representative

Keywords

knowledge

attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder

treatment acceptability

Date of Defense

2004-03-16

Availability

unrestricted

Abstract

Behavior modification and medication have been proven to be the most effective interventions for children with ADHD. For these treatments to be effective, utilization of mental health care services as well as compliance with treatment recommendations is necessary. There has been shown lower care utilization among minorities for the treatment of behavioral disorders. In addition, lack of adherence among these populations to ADHD treatment is not explained by SES, parenting stress, or family coping. An alternative explanation may be parental knowledge of ADHD and opinions of commonly used treatments. The present investigation examined the effect of a brief knowledge intervention aimed at increasing knowledge of ADHD on treatment acceptability of commonly utilized treatments for ADHD in a low SES, minority population seeking initial services at a multidisciplinary behavior clinic for ADHD. Participants included 48 female guardians. They completed a demographic questionnaire, the Conners' Parent Rating Scale-Revised: Long Form (CPRS-R:L), six Treatment Evaluation Inventory - Short Forms (TEI-SF), and an Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder Knowledge Survey (AKOS-R). Upon their next visit to the clinic, participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group received an educational video intervention while the other group watched a control video. Following the videos, all participants again completed six TEI-SF's and the AKOS-R.

Results revealed that parent ratings of their child's behavior did not correlate with treatment acceptability ratings. Baseline knowledge was low and increased significantly for the experimental group when compared to the control group demonstrating good treatment integrity, F (1, 45) = 29.37, p = .01. A significant negative correlation was identified between changes in knowledge as assessed by the AKOS-R and the changes in the TEI-SF diet intervention (r = -.43, p = .01, r2 = .19). Change in knowledge accounted for 18% of the change in treatment acceptability of the diet intervention (R2 = .18). Changes in knowledge scores did not otherwise relate to changes in treatment acceptability ratings. Overall, it appears that adding a parental educational component to the treatment of children with ADHD will not lead to increased acceptability of empirically supported treatments with this population.